I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for capturing wave and/or tidal energy.
II. Description of Related Art
In view of the increasing cost of organic fuels, such as coal and oil, there has been a recent trend to harness energy for the generation of power from previously unharnessed or only marginally harnessed power sources. For example, wind turbines for generating electrical power from wind currents have enjoyed increased popularity.
A still further source of previously unharnessed energy is the energy generated and consumed from the movement of water levels in water bodies. For example, there are previously known devices for harnessing the energy occurring through the movement of ocean tides.
While the energy stored in the movement of water due to tidal variations is indeed large, the equipment necessary to harness that energy for the production of electrical power has proven to be costly not only to construct but also to maintain. Furthermore, the movement of the water between high tide and low tide occurs only once per day on the average so that the energy in tidal water can only be harvested once per day, i.e. when the tide moves from high tide to low tide. Because of these limitations, devices to harness energy from tidal movement of the oceans have not proven cost effective.
A still further type of natural energy that has been previously unharnessed, or only minimally so, is the energy in the changing water levels in a water body due to waves in the water body. Such waves are typically caused by wind and vary in both magnitude and frequency as a function of the available wind power. However, when waves are present, the waves rise and fall much more rapidly than the movement of water level due to tidal effects.
Previously, there have been no machines or devices which have effectively harnessed the energy from waves in a water body.